Bank Plans to Blend Bitcoin with Traditional Money

Citi is gearing up to weave Bitcoin into its everyday banking services. The bank’s chief of digital asset custody, Nisha Surendran, told attendees at a strategy conference that they will soon launch a system to keep Bitcoin safe and easy for big‑money clients. The new service will let customers hold Bitcoin in the same way they keep stocks and bonds, using Citi’s proven security tools. The plan covers three main parts: a secure storage system, ways to link Bitcoin to existing tax and reporting tools, and a simple way for clients to buy or sell the digital coin. Citi already manages about $30 trillion in customer assets, so adding Bitcoin should fit into its current workflow. Clients won’t have to handle wallets or private keys themselves; Citi will take care of those details.Analysts at the bank expect Bitcoin’s price to climb, with a hopeful peak around $189, 000 and a lower bound near $78, 500 by next year. The rise could be driven by new exchange‑traded funds and clearer U. S. rules. Morgan Stanley is also moving into the crypto space, planning a new custody and trading platform that will let its E‑Trade users trade spot coins. The firm is looking at crypto lending and yield products, aiming to bring off‑platform holdings onto its own system. Both banks show that big financial institutions are trying to make digital currencies a normal part of investment portfolios, using their existing regulatory and reporting systems to keep everything transparent.